The Invisible Man

The invisible man is a man without a sense of identity or purpose. He is disconnected in spirit and lives through this world as a drifter. He lives because he has to.

The invisible man does what he can because he must. He believes himself to be in control of his life, but he is not. He allows himself to be dictated rather than living by his own volition. He lives by fear and not for life. He hopes, wishes, dreams, and waits, but he does not act.

The invisible man is invisible because he is a non-entity. He is invisible at work, for he is but a cog in the System. He is invisible to women, for he is weak and undesirable. He is invisible to the society which he serves, for he is but a single man among millions. He is invisible even to himself, for he lacks the ability to perceive and search within himself.

The invisible man is seen but unseen, everywhere but nowhere. He stands in line, he sits in a chair, he lies on his bed. He is there but not there. The other invisible men see him and walk past him. They recognize one another, but they cannot acknowledge one another.

The invisible man must numb himself into believing that he matters, and he must fool others into believing that he is visible. To this end he entertains his mind with exciting images and indulges in pleasure-inducing foods and substances. He distracts himself from the paleness of his existence by latching onto the adventures and glories of other men. He coils himself with objects so that people won’t be able to see through his emptiness. He submits to ideas, entities, and god for slavery is his ultimate freedom and salvation. At least as a slave, he serves a certain purpose.

The invisible man is both sad and bitter, angry and scared. His emotions lead him and control him, not his will. He complains and blames, but there is no one to listen to him for he is invisible. When he realizes this, he continues on as before, waiting for another chance to complain and blame. His pain and suffering are also invisible.

Time ticks for the invisible man. He lives in the past and in the future, but not in the present reality. He laments the loss of his time, yet he waits. What does he wait for?

…

Then one day, the invisible man decides that he is no longer invisible…